I discuss topics from current events to anything else of interest Comments are welcome provided that they are relevant and respectful. Copying,reprinting, or republishing of posts and articles is strictly prohibited. Writing a short excerpt in your own words and sharing blog posts via a link is okay, provided there is a direct link to the original post. No spammers! Any comments containing promotional links will be marked as spam and deleted.

Pages

FTC Disclosure:

I am not paid or compensated in any way to write product reviews posted to this blog. There are affiliate links posted throughout this blog. So, when you click through on links and buy something, I may receive a commission. I pay for the products with my own funds. Product reviews always reflect my own experience with and honest opinion of the product as a consumer.

Thursday, April 14, 2011

Taco Bell’s Frutista Freezes are so incredibly delicious. The Frutista Freeze comes in three different flavors: berry pomegranate, strawberry, and mango strawberry (my favorite). Taco Bell offers the Frutista Freeze in 16 ounce and 20 ounce sizes. The cup is easy to handle and transparent, so you can see exactly what you a receiving. It is sort of like drinking a premium Slurpee, but much better. I can tell some care is taken to prepare these beverages. They contain bits of real fruit, along with what appears to be crushed, flavored ice. According to the makers of the beverage, it does not contain any fruit juice, but rather it contains natural fruit flavoring.

I think that Frutista Freezes are a great complement to tacos or other items on the Taco Bell menu. It is a drink that is very cool and refreshing. If it is a particularly hot day, I can look forward to a quick energizing, thirst quencher by drinking a Frutista Freeze. I go to Taco Bell and buy Frutista Freezes so often that the workers are probably sick of seeing me in their drive-thru. Pretty soon I will be on a first name basis with the friendly and courteous Taco Bell employees.

The only negative thing that I would say about the drink is that you have to drink it really slowly. Otherwise, you will get brain freeze and your eyes will feel like they are going to burst. I usually take my time and sip the drink through the straw. I savor every sip that I take, and when the drink is almost finished, I devour the bits of fruit at the bottom of the cup. The price that I paid for a 16 ounce Frutista Freeze was $1.99, which is a decent value for the money. I don’t think that I will ever get bored of the Frutista Freeze, and it is highly recommended. Copyright 2011- http://www.thewhimsicalmusingsofsusan.com

The simple answer is yes. However, the collection agency can’t just go out on a whim and garnish wages. They have to follow the rules of the game. The collection agency must properly file a lawsuit, ensure that the debtor is properly served a valid summons and/or complaint for lawsuit and then win a judgment against the debtor. A summons is a court issued notification to the debtor that he or she is being sued and must appear in court. Most of the time a summons is served by a process server or a local sheriff’s officer. Wage garnishments for local, state, or federal taxes, student loans, and child support do not require a court order or lawsuit. Unfortunately, the tools at a creditor’s disposable doesn’t stop here.

Once a collection agency receives a judgment, it can record the judgment and a judgment lien at the clerk of court office. A judgment lien is attached to any real property of the debtor and certain personal property. When the property is ever sold, some of the proceeds of the sale can be used to pay the creditor that obtained the judgment lien. Recorded judgment liens can last up to 20 years in many states and can also be renewed. In addition, judgments are public record and are often reported to credit bureaus.

Now, if a collection agency wants to garnish wages and bank accounts after winning a judgment, it has to file documents through the court to do so. Depending on the debtor’s state of residence, the collection agent is generally permitted to garnish up to 25% of net wages from a paycheck. The debtor will receive a notice from his or her employer or bank if this going to occur. This is a bit of a digression, but Uncle Sam can take more than 25% if back taxes are owed to the IRS. The state can take more if child support payments are garnished.

The worst thing that a debtor can do is to ignore a lawsuit summons and fail to respond and/or appear in court. If this happens, then congratulations: The debtor has essentially handed the creditor a default judgment on a silver platter. Afterwards, the debtor won’t have much legal recourse, unless it can be proven that the lawsuit is invalid or the debtor was not served lawsuit papers. State law gives the debtor a specified amount of time to respond to a complaint by filing an answer.

Sunday, April 10, 2011

When I started taking online surveys a few years ago, I was a bit skeptical. Rightfully, I thought of it as an industry filled with scam artists. While there are some websites that masquerade as market research companies, I know through trial and error and experience that there are legitimate market research companies, which will pay consumers for their opinions. Market research companies usually conduct their research by administering a panel of questions over the phone, by mail, in person, or on the internet.

Companies are interested in knowing what consumers think of a wide range of products and services from food, clothing, electronics, etc. The reason that they are willing to pay consumers for their opinions, is because the market research is usually targeted to particular groups of people. In other words, these companies are wanting to gather facts from people in certain demographics. They know that your time is important, so they will pay you for it.

As a hypothetical example, a credit card company might be interested in implementing a new rewards program. The credit card company will hire a market research company to ask panelists (survey takers) their opinion of the rewards program. Of course, the market research company will only allow people to participate in the survey if they fit the specific demographics for the research project. If you don't own a credit card then most likely, you don't qualify to take the survey. This is a good thing, because the two companies want accurate results. Also, you would not want to waste your time sitting through a survey that is not relevant to you.

This targeted research saves companies a lot of money in product research and advertising costs. If companies know that particular products will not be received well by consumers, then the companies probably won't take unnecessary risks in developing and marketing those products.

You will not get rich or be able to quit your day job by taking surveys. However, the extra cash earned does help. On average, survey websites will pay somewhere between $1.00-$5.00 per qualified survey completed. There are a variety of payment incentives including check, gift certificates, or PayPal, although some market research companies only offer sweepstakes entries as a reward for completing their survey.

Besides the obvious benefit of getting paid for your opinions, you get to influence. Companies that distribute and manufacture products take what consumers say into consideration. Thus, participating in market research has a major impact on the types of products and services that companies market. If there is a way that companies can improve existing products, then they want to know about it. From time to time there are opportunities for panelists to learn what other panelists think, as well.

Now, if you are not the type of person that likes sitting in front of a computer for long periods, then it may not be for you. After hours of survey taking, you might get "numb booty" and your eyes will glaze over, as you click through page after page. I admit that it can be tedious and boring, depending on the type of survey opportunity offered. However, I have done some very exciting and interesting surveys in the past.

Here's a list of websites that I have found to be reputable and legitimate in their dealings with survey takers. Please read the terms of service for each website prior to joining. Some survey websites accept U.S. residents only.

Monday, April 4, 2011

Writing in to your favorite manufacturers to get free coupons is easy. You don't need to be the best writer or write a dissertation to see results. The first thing you should do is start a list of all of your favorite product manufacturers.

Next, Google the product manufacturers to find out their contact information. Most of the time, you will find a customer support e-mail, a postal mailing address, and/or a toll free number on the "contact us" link of their manufacturer's website. Sometimes this information can be found on product packaging under "comments or suggestions".

I recommend that you set up a free e-mail address for the purposes of signing up for coupons. This is to avoid getting spammy type e-mails in your regular e-mail account. Most reputable companies don't engage in selling consumers personal information, though. I doesn't hurt to take extra measures to protect your privacy, however. Compose a short paragraph to the manufacturer explaining why you like or detest their products. The key is to be honest. If you have any comments or suggestions on how to improve the products, then mention it in the paragraph. Mention the names of the products that you like, also. Make the paragraph detailed, yet succint. I would not make a direct request for coupons in the letter to the manufacturer, though. It is almost perceived by the product manufacturer as trying to get something for nothing. Retailers and product manufacturers spend millions of dollars in marketing and research expenses. They are interested in learning what consumer's think about their products and services. If you write a letter simply begging for coupons, it may go in the recycle bin or get deleted with no response. Remember to thank the manufacturer for taking the time to read your letter. Another thing that I suggest is keeping track of the product manufacturers that you write to, the date that you send a letter, the date that you receive a response, and the type of response you receive. The types of responses that you receive are varied. Some manufacturers don't respond to letters, some simply send a thank you e-mail or letter in response, and others send freebies, high value coupons, and letters. For example, I received a thank-you e-mail from one manufacturer, but no coupons. They also started to send me consumer surveys about their products via my e-mail address. It is helpful to keep a log of your results so that you will know which companies to write to again in the future.Making a template in your word processor software is a big time saver. You can insert the parts into the template that are more specific to each company that you write to. Also, if you prefer to speak to a live person, you can call the manufacturer's toll free number. Here is an example of an e-mail that I sent to Celestial Seasonings:Hello,

I am writing this e-mail because I absolutely love your Sleepytime Extra Wellness Tea. It tastes so delicious with a little honey added. Just opening up the box of tea bags releases a burst of freshness and rich scents that lets me know that I am getting the real deal. When I brew this tea and drink a cup, it doesn’t take long for me to drift into a peaceful sleep. I wake up the next morning feeling refreshed without a drowsy, hang over. I also really appreciate that you are doing your share to help the environment. Please add me to your mailing list for when you have newsletters, special promotions, and new products. Thank you so much for your time. About a week or so after I sent the e-mail, I received two coupons for 50 cents off 1 box of tea. I also received a thank you letter inviting me on a tour of their facility if I happen to be in the area.